Keeping the Baby, Recycling the Bathwater
Highly Functional
Cost Effective
Retrofit Milking Parlors
2009 Winter Dairy Management Dairy Modernization Series Collin McCarthy, NWNY Dairy Team & John Conway, PRO-DAIRY
HugeA
to Dr. Dave Kammel, University of Wisconsinfor use of many of his slides in this presentation
New York, like Wisconsin New York, like Wisconsin Family Dairy Farms…Family Dairy Farms…
Are all unique Have modernized or
adopted technology over time
Have been growing in size
Have adapted their own unique combination of facilities, management, and labor to make a profitable enterprise
Tie Stall Barn
Grazing Freestall and Parlor
Common GoalsCommon Goals
Economic• Manage Debt Load• Low Capital Cost• Improve Profitability
Labor• Reduce Physical Labor • Milk in a Reasonable Amount of Time• Improve Labor Efficiency• Use Existing Labor Force• Hire Labor as Needed
Common GoalsCommon Goals
Quality of Life• Increase Family Time• Reduce Fatigue
Health• Improve Milker Health and Safety
Transition In/Out• Allow Senior Partner to Exit Operation• Allow New Partner to Enter Operation
Parlor Capital and Annual Costs
Tie Stall• $35,040/year labor
Low Cost Remodeled Parlor• $25,000-capital
• ($2,808 annual)• $14,600/year labor
Medium Cost Remodeled Parlor• $50,000-capital
• ($5,832 annual)• $14,600/year labor
High Cost Remodeled Parlor• $100,000-capital
• ($11,448 annual)• $14,600/year labor
New Parlor• $250,000
• ($28,944 annual)• $14,600/year labor
Right to the bottom line…
$0.00
$0.50
$1.00
$1.50
$2.00
$ C
ost/c
wt
TS LCP MCP HCP NP
System
Labor CostCapital Cost
$1.33
$.72$.89
$1.22
$2.23
100%78%
62%
46%
25%
How do youmake this…….
…look like this?
Keeping costs as low as possible is good business… but what about the “Highly Functional”?
Milking System Design Considerations – Happy people make happy cows and vice versa
It pays to get lighting right
Easy entrance an absolute must
Traction, traction, traction!
Avoid exiting bottlenecks
Balance parlor, group and holding area size for best throughput
Don’t forget ease of equipment maintenance and repair
No one (cows or humans) likes noise
Climate control directly relates to “happy cows & people”
The Tao of Milking Cows
RhythmRhythm
FlowFlow
Milkers Milk
Cows move from the barn to the parlor (and back) with minimal human intervention
Labor is transferred from humans to cows and interact only at the udder
The Tao of Milking Cows
Rhythm and Flow help prevent the cardinal sins of milking:
Entering the holding area
Hose usage in the parlor
Hollering, hitting, hating
Rushing - trying to work faster than a cow
Leaving the pit to assist in the Flow
COWS
PEOPLE FACILITY
Holding Area
Parlor
Milking System Design Considerations –
Happy People Make Happy Cows and vice versa
“Upward Spiral” of positive experiences leads to:
- fluid movement of cows into parlor
- quick/full milk letdown, complete milkout
- fluid movement away from parlor
- less manure left behind
Parlor design figures hugely in creating that “upward spiral”. Here’s how…
Milking System Design Considerations –
It Pays to Get Lighting Right
Cows balk at entering dark areas
People more alert, better mood (atrium effect)
Much easier to see udders, teat ends, abnormal milk, early feet problems, etc.
Milking System Design Considerations –
Holding Area
Entrance must be in the back- cows detest sharp turns
Wide gates minimize cow to post contact and allow for equipment entry
Fans, fans, and more fans
Milking System Design Considerations –
Easy Entrance an Absolute Must
Avoid steep slopes
Funnel ‘em in with narrowing corrals -especially useful in training 1st calf heifers -less need for “extra help” -minimizes slipping
Seriously consider walking pre-fresh heifers through parlor following a “model” cow
COWS’ TWO MOST IMPORTANT IMPRESSIONS:
FIRST IMPRESSION
&
WORST IMPRESSION
Milking System Design Considerations –
It Pays to Get Lighting Right
Cows balk at entering dark areas
People more alert, better mood (atrium effect)
Much easier to see udders, teat ends, abnormal milk, early feet problems, etc.
Provide lighting in holding area too!
Milking System Design Considerations –
Crowd Gates
Always use electricity (ALWAYS) Crowd gates are area reducers, not cow
pushers Solid gates = no escape Non-solid gates (chains or pipes) need to be
permeable to a cow on the run Don’t need to cost a fortune
Milking System Design Considerations –
Traction, Traction, Traction!
Eliminate slippery floors; cows and people
Even minor injuries to either at very least reduces efficiency, at worst leads to career shortening serious injuries
Milking System Design Considerations –
It Pays to Get Lighting Right
Cows balk at entering dark areas
People more alert, better mood (atrium effect)
Much easier to see udders, teat ends, abnormal milk, early feet problems, etc.
Provide lighting in holding area too!
Milking System Design Considerations –
Avoid Exiting Bottlenecks
Whether you go with traditional single file exit, rapid exit or individual exit it’s essential to provide space for clearing gates or getting around slow or idle cows
Nothing is more frustrating to a milker than losing 10 minutes each time side loading is delayed by cow traffic bottlenecks. Efficiency goes seriously down the tubes.
Worse yet is scared or frustrated cows who contribute to unwanted shoving, slipping or falling
Milking System Design Considerations –
Balance Parlor, Group and Holding area Size for Best Throughput
Balance is achieved when no cow is away from her pen for more than 1 hour.
Cows comfortably back “home” eat, drink, rest and produce more milk
Milking System Design Considerations –
Don’t Forget Ease of Equipment Maintenance & Repair
Keep key routine maintenance points clean and well-lit especially: -receiver groups (transfer pump motors, sanitary traps, drain shut offs and receiver jars -all rubber parts (gaskets, flapper valves, drain hoses, pinch valves, etc. -pulsators and fresh air filters
Before wedging a transfer pump into a corner, imagine needing to change a seal during milking in a puddle of putrefied milk!
Milking System Design Considerations –
No one (Cows or Humans) Likes Noise
Strive to get vacuum pumps, air valve exhausts and other mechanical noise makers away from the pit and parlor.
Some good measures:
-can the milker hear the weather report on the radio without really cranking the volume -can a conversation be held without the need for shouting
Rubber bumpers strategically placed can substantially dampen the sound of swinging gates
Milking System Design Considerations –
Climate Control Directly Relates to “Happy Cows & People”
In winter supplemental heat will: -keep the milker warm (and upbeat) -prevent freezing during the wash cycle (helping to avoid high PI counts and loss of quality premiums) -prevent frozen wash hoses and subsequent late starts
In summer mechanical cooling will: -vanquish flies -keep lungs filled with fresh air -help sustain morale
Benefits of the Highly Functional and Cost Effective Parlor “Package”
Minimized cow injuries
Minimized worker fatigue
Contributes to optimal cow productivity
Contributes to optimal worker output
Animal & human welfare concerns a non-issue
High probability of hitting profitability “sweet spot”!
Parlor Cost per Milking StallParlor Cost per Milking Stall2008 Dollars2008 Dollars
ParlorStall Type
RetrofitConstruction (n=55)
New Constructionn= 34
Flat barn $3,360(n=6)
NA
Herringbone $9,657(n=8)
$18,769(n=3)
Parabone $3,845(n=30)
$6,016(n= 10)
Parallel $7,478(n=11)
$22,361(n=18)
Existing Stall Barn
Center Alley
Pen
ParlorConstructionArea
Phase 1
Holding AreaConstruction
Phase 2
Plan ViewExisting Tie Stall Arrangement
Silo Silo
Door
Milk House ReceiverGroup
ManureReception
Posts and Beam
PipelineFeed Alley
Existing milk line and receiver
Centered Parlor LayoutPlan View
Silo Silo
Door
Milk House
ReceiverGroup
ManureReception
Milk line is reinstalled in parlor
Return
Cro
ss O
ver
Holding Area
Return
Personal Alley
Cross Ways Parlor LayoutPlan View
Door
Milk House
ReceiverGroup
ManureReception
Milk line is reinstalled in parlor
Ret
urn
Cross Over
Holding Area
Ret
urn Silo Silo
Temporary Milking Arrangement(Switch Milking)
Center Alley
Pen
ParlorConstructionArea
Phase 1
Switch MilkingIn Remaining Stallsas a FB parlor
Phase 1
Temporary Tie Stall ArrangementPhase 1
Silo Silo
Door
Milk House ReceiverGroup
ManureReception
Posts and Beam
PipelineFeed Alley
Milk line is rerouted to receiver
Milk line is removed from parlor area
Demolition
If in doubt……. remove
it
Excavation
Plumbingand Heating
Concrete Placement
Milking StallInstallation
Low Milk Line
SwingMilk Line
Milking SystemReceiver Group
Milking SystemInstallation(CIP)
Milking SystemInstallation(No CIP)
FinishCarpentry
ATOsSlider
ATOsSwing
Lighting
Holding AreaEntrance Curtain
Holding AreaEntrance Doors
Crowd gates(Cheap)
Crowd gates(Economical)
Parlor Waste
Milk House
Minimal Changes
Bulk Head TanksUtility SpaceUpgrade Equipment
$1,000 Parlor
$1,000 Truck
$17,000 Parlor
$17,000 Truck
$25,000 Parlor
$25,000 Truck
$30,000 Parlor
$30,000 Truck
$50,000 Parlor
$50,000 Truck
$100,000 Parlor
$100,000 Truck
$150,000 Parlor
$150,000 Truck?
$500,000 Parlor
$500,000 Truck?
“Be careful out there”… sage advice when it comes to the vagaries of stray voltage
Risk Factors:End of line
Bare concentric neutral (wire wrapped around hot leg and into soil)
Variable Frequency Drives
Age of system
Type of service
Multiple grounded neutrals
Dr. Steve Carlson, DVM and Dairy Producer, SE Iowa
“Be careful out there”… sage advice when it comes to the vagaries of stray voltage
Cow Level Signs:Immuno-suppression (including Hemorrhagic Bowel Syndrome)
Feet – rock back on heels, overgrown toes
Legs/hocks inexplicable rough look
Water trough shyness and “four- at-a-time-dilute-the-pain” drinking
“Defecation without Provocation” in parlor
Death
Inexplicably hard-to-heal sores
Dr. Steve Carlson, DVM and Dairy Producer, SE Iowa
“Be careful out there”… sage advice when it comes to the vagaries of stray voltage
Herd Level Signs (after exhausting other causes of same symptoms):
Excess lameness
Poor reproduction
Poor milk production – high or low components
High turnover rates
Poor fresh cow performance
Immuno-suppression
Seasonal variation in performance (herd drops under ___ weather conditions)
Dr. Steve Carlson, DVM and Dairy Producer, SE Iowa
Figure 1. Grounded Neutral Single Phase System, some hot wires not shown for clarity (from Midwest Plan Service Handbook Number 28).
“Be careful out there”… sage advice when it comes to the vagaries of stray voltage
The bad news is… very few people around the country have the equipment, skill and fortitude to chase down the really difficult-to-find and often multiple source situations.
Contact John Conway at607-547-2536, ext. 237 [email protected] to get Dr. Carlson’s list of qualifiedpeople.
Dr. Steve Carlson, DVM and Dairy Producer, SE Iowa
Questions??